On 4 March 2013, a Notice of Appeal was filed by cancer survivor Yvonne D’Arcy against the decision of Cancer Voices Australia v Myriad Genetics Inc [2013] FCA 65 (“Cancer Voices”), which held that isolated nucleic acid such as isolated DNA and RNA is patentable subject matter in Australia.
The Notice of appeal set out a number of grounds of appeal which centre on the finding that an isolated nucleic acid constitutes an artificial state of affairs. The grounds are set out in our earlier blog post:
http://www.pof.com.au/appeal-filed-against-federal-court-ruling-that-gene-patents-are-patentable/
Today, 5 September 2014, five judges in the Full Federal Court of Australia dismissed the appeal, which means that isolated DNA and RNA constitutes patentable subject matter in Australia.
We will provide more detail once the Judgment as been published.